Ad Astra Per Aspera
by Britt30
Summary: Clint Barton has done everything he can to keep his family safe, but he has to admit that he was not prepared for aliens. As the Avengers work to figure out who could have taken the children and where they might be now, Peter Quill is thrilled to run into three Terrans just like him. Maybe this will finally give him an excuse to go home.
1. Prologue

Something is wrong.

Clint sat up in bed, gun in his hand before he was fully awake. The room was dark and quiet. A gentle breeze floated in through the window, ruffling the curtains slightly. Everything seemed okay, so why did he feel so anxious?

"Laura," he said, shaking his wife gently. "Wake up."

"Hm? Clint? What's wrong?"

"I don't know," he said, climbing out of bed. "But something's not-"

"AAAAAIHHH!"

Clint was down the hall to the kids' room in a flash. Broken glass from the window littered the floor. Nathaniel's crib and the two beds were empty.

"Cooper! Lila!" he yelled.

"DADDY!"

Outside, two people were running across the dark lawn, one holding Lila and Nathaniel and the other struggling to hold onto Cooper. They were headed towards some sort of plane parked on the far side of the field.

Clint raised a prayer for safety as he leapt through the window and landed on the kids' trampoline below. Years of acrobat training took over as he tumbled through the air and landed on top of one of the assailants.

He, Cooper, and the kidnapper tumbled to the ground as the other person barely paused before they kept running.

It was hard to see in the dark, but Clint had the distinct feeling that this person was not human as he punched their face and his fist came back slimy. The grass was slick with dew and he was having more trouble than he cared to admit holding onto the assailant (and his gun).

"Coop! Get back to the house!" he yelled as he struggled to incapacitate the perpetrator.

"But what about Lil-AH!" Cooper's hand flew to his neck and he slumped to the ground as some projectile hit him.

"NO!" That momentary distraction was enough for the other person to kick the gun away from him and hit him in the gut, leaving him winded and buying him enough time to pick up Cooper and get to the plane.

 _Bang! Bang!_ A pair of gunshots rang out from the porch as Laura shot after the kidnappers, but it was too late.

Clint watched as the plane rose from the ground and as it hovered there, he suddenly realized that it was not a plane. It was a freaking spaceship.

He watched helplessly as it jumped to warp and was gone, leaving the farmstead as quiet as it had been before.

 **A/N: *jazz hands* tada! Uh, so yeah. Hope you guys liked this little prologue. Thanks for reading and please review!**


	2. Chapter 1: Domum et Foris

**A/N: Just a quick warning, there's a slightly gory scene in this chapter close to the end, so be aware.**

Laura sat crying on the couch and Clint paced anxiously back and forth. A spaceship. Someone with a freakin' spaceship had kidnapped his children. With an angry grunt, he punched the wall in the frustration.

"Clint," Laura said softly. He looked at her and his anger melted only to be replaced by guilt. He went and sat by her and they embraced each other.

"It'll be alright," she whispered. "We'll find them… somehow.

"Damn right we will," he muttered back. She pulled away and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"Clint. Look at me." He looked into his wife's steady gaze and she told him, "Don't think for even a moment that this is your fault."

"But-"

"Ah. No, this isn't your fault. You did everything you could to prevent this, so don't waste time feeling guilty when you need to be focused. Besides, none of us could have expected… that."

Hawkeye looked into Laura's eyes and nodded.

"Ok," he said. "I'll try."

They sat there and comforted each other until there was a knock on the door.

"About time," he muttered as he answered it. Natasha stood on the threshold.

"We'll find them," she said immediately. His lips quirked and he gestured for her to come in. She went immediately to Laura, gave her a hug, and told her the same thing.

"I told the team what's going on," she informed him, turning back around. "But I told them to just let me come for now."

"Except we didn't listen," Tony said, entering the room followed by the rest of the Avengers. Natasha glared at him.

"I told you guys to wait in the car."

"We were impatient. So what have we got to go on Barton?"

While mildly annoyed with Tony barging in, Hawkeye couldn't deny he was glad to have their help.

"Two intruders broke in through the second story window into the kids room. They exited that way as well and got away in their ship. As for where they're headed, your guess is as good as mine."

"Ship?" Steve asked. Clint nodded.

"It was a spaceship, I'm positive. And whoever I ended up tackling was not human." Thor perked up a bit.

"You made physical contact with them? We could get a residual sample and send it back to my homeworld to get an identification." They all looked at him, a bit shocked. Despite popular belief, Thor was not dumb.

"Right, yeah, that's a good start. Any ideas on how we could figure out where they're going?"

"Well I wouldn't trust any of the scientists at SHIELD right now," Natasha stated. She turned to Bruce. "You have any friends we could call?"

"I think the big guy's got us covered there too," he replied nodding to Thor, who was grinning from ear to ear.

"I'm sure my lady Jane would be happy to assist us in finding your children."

"Thank you Thor," Clint said sincerely.

"Do you have security tapes I could take a look at?" Tony asked.

"I'll show you where they are," Laura said and led Tony farther into the house.

"Thor and I will work on getting the DNA stuff sorted out. Steve, if you'd be willing to call up Jane. And Nat-"

"Bruce and I will get some tea going."

"Thanks."

Steve and Wanda settled in a corner of the room to try and contact Doctor Foster while Thor beckoned Clint to follow him outside.

"Why are we coming out here?" Clint asked as Thor continued across the front lawn.

"I do not have the tools necessary to take the sample we require. Therefore, it makes more sense to go there directly and get the results immediately as well."

"Wait, are you saying we're going-"

"To Asgard?" He grinned. "Oh yes!"

::::

"Looks like this one's finally coming to, Boss." Cooper groaned as he struggled to open his eyes.

"Cooper! Cooper, are you awake?" He finally managed to pry his eyes open and was greeted by his little sister peering over him nervously, holding Nathaniel in her lap.

"Hey Lila." She smiled brightly, but Cooper didn't miss the tear streaks that ran down her face. Suddenly, he heard loud boot-steps approaching.

"Well look who's returned to the land of the living." The man that towered above him was bright blue with piercing red eyes and a metal mohawk. "About damn time too. We were wondering if the tranq had been too strong for a Terran like you."

"Wh-who are you?" Cooper stammered, finally managing to sit up and take a look at his surroundings. He and his siblings were huddled in the corner of what looked like a storage room. Large crates and cages lined the walls and his gut twisted further when he realized that they were in a cage themselves. The man gave him a wolfish grin.

"Name's Yondu. I'd suggest you kids get some rest while you can. Got a while before we land at the next station and after that, your lives are gonna get a whole lot harder. Jerry," he said, addressing the dark green, bald man in the shadows behind him. "Give 'em some rations then get your sorry butt back on deck."

"Sure Boss."

"Wait!" Cooper called out after him. "Why are we here? Where are we?" But Yondu was already gone. The kids turned to Jerry.

"Ya wanna know why you're here?" He tossed a bag of freeze dried food in. "Too bad. Now hush up and don't cause trouble." He grinned, showing off his sharpened teeth. "Or something bad might happen." He stalked off, laughing.

Once Jerry was gone, Lila worriedly place her hand against Cooper's forehead.

"Are you okay? You were knocked out for a couple of hours."

"I'm fine. Just a little dizzy… and a lot confused. Are you two alright?" She nodded, but had tears in her eyes.

"Nathaniel hasn't cried at all yet, so that's good. But Cooper… I'm scared." The twelve year old pulled his sister into a hug.

"We'll be fine. Dad will find us, I promise."

"Really?" she asked.

"Knowing Dad, he won't stop til he does."

They didn't have a way to tell time and the dim lights of the cargo hold never shut off, but eventually the three of them managed to drift off to sleep. Lila was using Cooper's legs as a pillow and Cooper was leaning against the bars while holding Nathaniel. He grunted and shifted slightly, trying to find a more comfortable position. He finally gave up and just sat there, looking around.

There was really no point in trying to escape, not with a one year old and certainly not in space. But maybe he could figure out a way to try and contact his parents.

His train of thought stopped when he heard a door open and people coming down the hallway.

"I'm thinking the oldest. Collectors like the younguns and the girls."

"And you're sure Yondu won't mind?"

"Not as long as we share. And we don't have to eat the whole thing."

Cooper's blood ran cold. _Eat?_

He didn't know what to do and ended up sitting there paralyzed with indecision until the aliens came into view.

Jerry led the other three aliens over to their cage. Cooper finally made a decision and kicked Lila awake.

"Hm. Wha-" She gasped when she saw the crewmen. Cooper quickly handed Nathaniel off to her and stood protectively in front of them, even though his knees shook.

"Heh, well this sure makes things easier," Jerry said. He swiped some sort of card in front of the cage and the door popped open. Before Cooper could react, one of them grabbed his arm and tugged him out of the cage. He barely managed to keep his footing, but ended up running into the chest of a very large man with ridges decorating his face. Cooper quickly backed away only to run into another one; he was surrounded. Jerry smirked and suddenly caught Cooper's jaw in his hand, turning his head side to side.

"None of us have ever tasted Terran before. Last one we picked up joined the crew, but that won't be happening again."

"Get off me!" he grunted and wrenched his head free. The crewmen laughed/

"Hey!" Lila shouted, then threw her shoe at Jerry, managing to hit him in the head. "Leave him alone!" Jerry frowned and turned around.

"Little girl, you are in no position to make demands."

"If you don't let him go, I'll scream and then Nathaniel will scream, and he won't stop." Jerry glared at her then, quick as a whip, pulled out his gun and shot. Lila crumpled to the ground with a groan.

"Lila!" Cooper screamed. Nathaniel whimpered in confusion and Jerry raised the gun to him. "Don't shoot him!" Cooper cried, grabbing his arm and trying to wrestle the gun away.

"Oh hush up!" the guy said, shoving him to the ground. "It's only a tranq. Let's grab him and go," he told the others.

"No! No! Lila! Nat!" he yelled as they dragged him away kicking and was (understandably) terrified. He kicked and fought and punched, but to no avail. They dragged him into a smaller cargo hold and one of them pinned his arms behind his back.

"What now?" another one asked as Jerry shut the door behind them. Jerry grinned.

"Well I'd say dig in, but I'm sure the boss will want some left to sell." He looked Cooper up and down. "Left leg should be enough for all of us. Plus it'll be easier to hide with his pants."

"What the- no!" Cooper yelled, trying to struggle. With one quick motion, they pinned him to the ground and held him there; the twelve year old kid was simply no match.

That's not to say he didn't struggle. He fought as hard as he could, but to no avail and it wasn't long before he felt someone's fangs bite into his leg.

Cooper screamed. Long and hard before someone put their hand over his mouth. He redoubled his efforts to get away, to draw attention, to do _something_ to get out of this situation.

And thankfully, someone heard.

"What in the Nine Realms is going on!" Yondu shouted, bursting in. The crewmen quickly let go and backed away from Cooper, as if it would help them avoid the blame. Finally free, Cooper did his best to hold back another howl as he curled in on himself, in pain. His leg felt like it was on fire and when he touched it his hand came back red with blood.

"Whose idea was this?" Yondu shouted, looking around at the now silent crew members. Someone shoved Jerry forward. He tried to move back, but it was too late. Yondu whistled, and Cooper didn't see what happened, but a moment later, Jerry was dead.

"The rest of you idjits are getting no shore leave when we dock! And two hundred credits off your next pay!" There were some angry mutters, but a warning whistle from Yondu shut them all up.

"Now get out of here."

They left quietly, one of them kicking Cooper as they went. A deep sigh and an angry swear and then Yondu was helping Cooper sit up.

"Let's get a bandage on that and get you back to your sister. Can you stand?" Cooper nervously shook his head yes, and with the blue captain's help, managed to stand. He helped him over to a crate where he sat down while the man went to go fetch some bandages. The boy was still sobbing quietly, permanently scarred by what had just happened. He rolled up his pajama bottom to get a look at his leg, then quickly looked away to avoid throwing up.

Yondu came back and quickly bandaged the wound, working efficiently, yet surprisingly gently. He licked some blood off his hand.

"Hm. Salty. Here, drink this," he said and handed him a small vial. "It'll help with the pain."

"Th-thanks," Cooper stuttered. He quietly drank it and passed the empty vial back to Yondu.

The captain helped him to stand again and led him back to the bigger storage room. He talked as they walked.

"I recall you wondering where you were and why you were here." He looked down at the boy, who nodded. "Well," he said, looking forward. "We were hired to grab you and your siblings and run. As for where you are, the simplest answer is "space.""

"Kinda figured that one out," Cooper replied in a whisper. Yondu laughed.

"Fair enough kid, fair enough." He unlocked the cage they had since arrived at. It appeared Lila had woken up and ended up falling back asleep with Nathaniel. "Now get back in there. Those fellas won't hurt you no more."

"Thanks. Uh, Yondu?" The captain turned back. "I, uh, heard the last hu-I mean Terran, you had on board joined the crew." Yondu grinned.

"That's right. Name was Peter. Great kid. Not a chance. Now shut your yap and go to sleep."

 **A/N: Alright, first chapter and I've already managed to traumatize a kid. Sorry if it got a bit grisly, but I hope you guys enjoyed it! Thank you for all of your lovely reviews! They mean the world! Next chapter should be mostly Clint on Asgard and a quick check in with the Barton chilluns. Thanks for reading and, if you can, leave a review.**


	3. Chapter 2: Fallaciae

**A/N: Hey guys! So, so sorry for the long wait, but I have a better idea of where I want to go with this now, so hopefully I'll be able to update quicker. In any case, here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy!**

Traveling through the Bifrost was not something Clint was eager to experience again.

"Clint? Are you alright?" Thor asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. Clint was currently resting his hands on his knees trying to control his stomach.

"Yeah, just, ugh…, give me a minute." Thor backed up respectfully and a moment later Clint stood up.

"Ok. I'm good now."

"It is a bit of a shock the first time," Thor conceded.

"Yeah, no kidding." Suddenly, Clint caught sight of Heimdall who was standing at the doorway. "Uh, who's he?"

"Friend Clint this is Heimdall, all seeing keeper of the way between worlds. Heimdall, this is Clint Barton, one of the Avengers."

"Nice to meet you," Clint said somewhat nervously. Heimdall almost smirked and rumbled back,

"And you as well. Thor," he said, "Some scientists have been alerted and are waiting for you in the infirmary."

"Thank you Heimdall." With a respectful nod, Thor led the way across the Rainbow Bridge with the awestruck (and still somewhat queasy) Avenger in tow.

"Gotta hand it to you Thor, this is a sweet place." There was so much to look at, from the glistening city to the brightly colored bridge to the edge of space behind them.

 _The kids would love this,_ Clint thought and his heart broke even more if it was possible. It didn't help that on top of his worrying, he was on edge; he knew Loki was dead, but part of him still harbored a small grudge, or fear, or resentment of Asgardians; he didn't know which it was.

The guards at the gate nodded respectfully to their prince and gave an odd look at the Midgardian in their midst.

 _What's their problem?_ Clint wondered, then glanced down and realized he was still wearing pajamas. Whoops.

The palace was simply huge. By the time they reached the infirmary, Clint was feeling a bit agoraphobic and was wishing there was an air vent to hide in.

In stark contrast to infirmaries on earth, this one was decked out in darker colors. Dark brown tile made up the floor and walls, while pristine lab tables were made of something not entirely earth and not entirely metal. Hospital beds lined the walls further back, but in the front of the room, there were three large lab tables decked out with state of the art, Asgardian technology. Two scientists were bent over a holographic display on one of the tables, but looked up when the two men came in.

"Your Majesty," said one of the scientists, decked out in light colored robes with dark red hair. "Heimdall alerted us to your arrival." Thor nodded.

"My friend here, his children were taken by creatures not of his world. There was a fight and we were hoping to get an identification off the residue on his hands."

"Of course. If you'll follow me," she said, addressing the archer. Thor nodded encouragingly as Clint followed the other Asgardian to a smaller table.

"Sir." Thor turned at the voice and found a palace guard standing at the door. "Your father requests your presence." Thor looked at Clint who nodded and smiled a bit.

"I'll be fine here. You go on ahead."

With his friend taken care of, Thor followed the guard to the throne room where Odin sat regally upon his throne.

"I did not expect to see you back here so soon, my son."

"Neither did I Father."

"Tell me, why have you brought yet another Midgardian into our midst?" Thor tried not to bristle at his father's derisive tone.

"He is more than just another Midgardian, Father. Clint is one of the Avengers-"

"The archer?" Odin interrupted, suddenly looking interested.

"Yes," Thor continued, slightly confused. If he hadn't known better, he'd say there was a mischievous glint in Odin's eye.

"Take me to him," the king demanded suddenly.

"Father, are you sure that's wise?" asked Thor taken aback.

"I am the king- and your father. Despite how I may act, I wouldn't mind meeting your friends."

Thor, though kind of bewildered, led his father back to the infirmary where the scientists were just finishing up.

"The results should come back within a couple of hours and judging by the circumstances, I think there's a high probability there will be a match."

"Thank you," Clint replied, then caught sight of Thor. "Welcome back Point Break. That was-" He caught sight of Odin. "Quick." The scientists turned and bowed to their king. The archer, not entirely sure what to do, dipped his head a bit; he wasn't one for formalities.

"So, this is the Midgardian," Odin began. "I've heard much about you." He waved the guards away. "Leave us. I wish to speak to him alone for a moment."

The scientists and guards left without a word, but Thor looked to Clint first, who nodded, and only then did he leave.

"So, uh, sorry for trespassing in your home Your Majest-"

Suddenly, the illusion dropped. Odin disappeared and Loki stood in his place.

Hawkeye reeled back. His hand scrabbled across the table and eventually found a scalpel that he brandished like a weapon. Loki chuckled.

"Oh please. As if you could harm me."

"Wanna bet?" Clint huffed, heart racing and blood boiling. "Does Thor know?"

"By the gods, no. Do you think I'd still be here if he did?"

"What do you want?"

"Mostly to mess with you," Loki admitted. "But also to find out why you're here."

Clint pressed his lips together. This guy had wreaked havoc in his mind and didn't deserve anything from him.

"Perhaps I could even help," the god baited. The archer gritted his teeth; he didn't want this guy's help, as much as he might end up needing it.

"By the searches you're running, I'd say you're looking for someone," he said, moving closer to the table. "Though why you'd be searching for anyone off planet- besides me of course- is beyond me.

"Unless… something happened to that secret family of yours."

"Shut up! You don't get to mention them. You shouldn't even know about them!"

"What happened?"

"Why do you care?"

"I'm not sure I do, but… there is a part of me that would like to make up for what I did to you." Clint couldn't help it. He laughed.

"Fine. Y'know what, fine. Go ahead and try. My children got kidnapped by some guys in a spaceship. You wanna make up for what you did? Help me find them. And if you don't, I'll tell Thor you're not dead."

"Deal," Loki said, extending his hand. It took every ounce of courage and stupidity that Clint had to reach out and shake that hand, but he did it. It felt like a small electric shock went through him.

"What was that?" he demanded.

"Sealing the deal so to speak," Loki replied. "Now let's call the others back in before my brother throws a fit." He swiftly changed back into Odin. "And remember," the King said, with a smirk that was all Loki. "This is our secret."

::::

Thor gave Clint a tour of the palace while they waited for the results.

"Unfortunately Sif and the Warriors Three are offworld right now or I would introduce you." He glanced over at his Midgardian friend and saw that he didn't look well; his jaw was clenched and he looked a bit pale. "Are you alright?"

"Huh?" Clint said. "Oh yeah. Sorry, I just have a lot on my mind. This whole thing has been a big shock to say the least."

"Ah. I understand," Thor replied, nodding.

 _I really doubt that you do, but thanks,_ Clint thought.

"Come. Let us get some food and see if the results have come in yet."

The mess hall wasn't very busy so it was quite easy to duck in and grab a bite to eat. Clint settle for an apple and a bread roll, knowing that he needed to eat, but not having much of an appetite, especially after the latest reveal.

Loki was alive and it made Clint sick to even think about it. And it only got worse when he thought about the fact that Thor didn't know. This big Asgardian, his _friend,_ had already lost his mother and supposedly his brother. He deserved to know the truth, but the real question was how he would react when he did. Of course, Clint had tried to tell him the truth right away, deal or no deal, but found that every time he tried, his jaw locked shut. Whatever sort of magic Loki had worked, it was real and, hopefully, just as binding for the caster too.

Thor was on his third sandwich when one of the younger scientists appeared in the mess hall. Hawkeye caught sight of them right away and nudged Thor as they were beckoned over.

"The results are in," the scientist stated briefly and led them back to the examination room.

"There was a match in the system. The DNA belongs to Jeremiah Kvernan." A picture of a leery, green skinned man appeared in front of them. "He's been in jail twice for assault, armed robbery, and poaching and he currently has another warrant out for his arrest. In the past, he's worked for this man," a blue man appeared, "doing mercenary work. I would start there," the woman said, turning back to them.

"Can I get a hard copy of this information?" Clint asked.

"Of course."

As the scientist bustled away towards what Clint assumed was their equivalent of a printer, the archer turned to Thor.

"What do you think we should do?"

"Well, I'm assuming you would like to go after them." The archer nodded in affirmation. "In which case I will supply you with a ship, and accompany you if I can."

"I'm sure some of the others will want to come."

"And I don't see why they shouldn't," Thor replied. The scientist returned at that moment and handed him a small flat disk.

"Pressing that button will pull up an interactive hologram with all the information. I hope you find them."

"Thank you," Clint said sincerely. "We should probably head back," he told Thor. The demigod nodded.

"Agreed. We have much to discuss."

::::

Loki watched from a palace window as his brother and the archer returned to Midgard. Once the light of the Bifrost had faded, he turned with a whoosh of his cape. He had his own planning to do.

 **A/N: Tada! So yeah, this happened. I hope you guys liked it and if you can, please leave a review to let me know what you thought! Thanks so much!**


	4. Chapter 3: Nota Faciem

**A/N: Hey y'all! Sorry for the long wait, but hey, college is a thing now, so that's exciting. Thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews and a special thanks to Aqua468 and Wings of a Bird!**

 **And without further ado, enjoy!**

"We're here!" yelled Yondu as he romped into the storage room, part of the crew following behind him. Lila sat up with a start at the sudden noise. Aliens roved all over, looking busy, and lowering the ramp to the surface of whatever planet they were on below. Her heart hammered against her chest. What was gonna happen to them now?

"Start unloading," Yondu said. "Take those crates over there. Hey, someone help me with this one!"

Yondu grabbed one side of the cage while a purple creature came to help him. Lila tried to keep her balance with Nathaniel on her lap as they carried the cage down the ramp. The jostling finally woke Cooper who blearily made his way to reality.

Well, he hoped it was reality. Even Lila wasn't entirely sure this wasn't just a bizarre dream.

A huge, sprawling marketplace was spread out before them. Stalls of all shapes and sizes and colors formed main thoroughfares and tiny alleys. Creatures of every possible type hurried to their favorite vendors, trying to get what was good before it was gone. A small group of exotic individuals stood about twelve meters away, clustered together, waiting to see what fresh merchandise was being brought in. The ship was on the edge of the bazaar, next to some others who also had their hatches open and were selling right out of the cargo hold.

The moment Yondu and the other set their cage down on the ground, a large, brown, vaguely pitbullish looking alien made his way over to them.

"What 'ave you got for me today Yondu?"

"Just the man I was hoping to see. Got some fresh Terrans here. 3k credits a piece."

"That's a steep price for these runts." He bent down to get a better look and leered at them through the bars. Nathaniel whimpered and Lila hugged him tightly while Cooper tried to glare back at him. "Bit on the young side, aren't they?" he asked, standing back up.

"Yeah, but you know they're rare. The boy'll last a good sixty years in the right conditions, the girl too even, and you know how collectors love babies."

"Hm… Take it down to 2k and you got a deal."

"Done." The two shook on it and with a swipe of a card, Yondu unlocked the cage. "Alright. Get out of there. This is Rannock. Don't try any funny business with him."

"Come along you runts."

"Wait, what just happened?" Cooper asked. Yondu cuffed him over the head.

"Shut it. 'Sides, you're smart kids. I'm sure you can figure it out. Now git."

Rannock grabbed Lila roughly by the wrist, causing her to cry out. Cooper immediately stepped in front of her.

"Don't touch her!"

"Don't talk back boy," Rannock growled, shoving Cooper in front of him, causing him to crash to the ground; his leg was still healing and couldn't support the sudden weight.

"Cooper!" Lila cried, and quickly helped him up. "Leave us alone!" Nathaniel started to fuss so she quickly tried to quiet him.

"Fat chance missy. Now get a move on. I got slaves to sell."

"Slaves?" squeaked Cooper in a rather undignified manner.

"You heard me. Now move or I won't care who I sell you to."

Lila supported Cooper as much as she could and they glanced at each other uneasily. What were they going to do?

::::

"Why are we stopping here again?" Gamora asked, distaste decorating her features as she glared at the bazaar ahead of them.

"We need supplies," Peter explained casually as he carefully landed the ship.

"And _this_ is the best place you could come up with?"

"Well, no, but it is the most interesting."

Rocket jumped up on Peter's headrest to take a look out the windshield.

"Aw yeah. This is the place to be."

"It's full of dirty rotten scoundrels and criminals."

"Like yourself, you mean?" Rocket asked innocently. Gamora was two seconds away from strangling him, when Peter stood up and knocked Rocket off the headrest in the process.

"Well, we're here so we might as well go and look around and see if there's anything worth buying." He clapped the recently regrown Groot on the shoulder as he passed, and the tree nodded.

"I am Groot," he agreed.

"Yeah, yeah," muttered the assassin, but followed them outside into the blistering hot sun.

It took a minute for their eyes to adjust to the bright light, but once they did, Rocket was already way ahead of them, darting between vendors, (casually slipping things in his bag), and getting under foot. Groot stoically followed behind him.

The others quickly caught up to them and once they got farther in, Peter had to hold back his gag reflex. The place smelled terrible! It smelled like day old alcohol and some serious BO. Gamora couldn't help but smirk.

"You see what I mean?"

"Yeah, we are never coming back here," Peter agreed. He noticed Rocket had climbed up on Groot's shoulder as was pointing at something excitedly. "Oh, what did he find now."

"Whatever it is, it's probably not good."

"I would have to agree," Drax said.

The three of them caught up to the racoon and his friend to see what they were looking at.

"They've got a slave market here!" Rocket cried excitedly. "Peter," he chuckled. "Hear me out on this one-"

"We are not buying a slave!" Peter yelled.

"Come on. They could clean the ship for us, do our laundry, cook. Y'know, all the things we never do anyway."

"That is a bit low, even for you," Gamora said. Drax cracked a smile.

"Is that because he is short?" he whispered, (which was a normal voice for him). Rocket bristled angrily, but Peter bust out laughing.

"We'll look as we walk by, okay?"

Quite honestly, Peter tried to avoid making eye contact with any of them. The slaves were kept in large, overcrowded cages that formed a large square and appeared to be roughly separated by gender and age. Some had tears running down their face, others were glaring and snarling, and others had blank looks on their faces, completely devoid of emotion.

"Hey Quill! This one looks like you!"

"Wait, what?"

Peter joined Rocket next to one of the cages and peered in.

"There, in the back corner. He looks like a Terran."

"You're right." Near the back of the cage, knees drawn up to his chest, was a young boy with shaggy brown hair. One of his legs was wrapped in a dirty bandage. "Hey! Hey kid!" Most of the slaves in the cage looked curiously at him, but the boy didn't seem interested. "Are any of you from Earth?" he finally asked. The boy's head whipped up and he cautiously raised his hand.

"Rocket, go find who's selling here."

"With pleasure. C'mon Groot."

"I am Groot."

Quill shuffled nervously as he waited for Rocket to come back with the merchant. He had had some close calls over the years with slave dealers and couldn't say he was fond of them. He glanced back over at the boy and noticed the hope and fear shining in his eyes.

Rocket returned a moment later, with the rather large dealer in tow.

"I hear you're interested in buying," the alien said.

"We're interested in _looking_ right now," Peter corrected, glaring at Rocket. "We want to look at that Terran back there, the boy." The dealer scoffed.

"That lousy runt? You can get a much better deal with one of them Florians. What about that b-"

"We want to look at the boy," Gamora stated forcefully. Drax humphed in agreement and crossed his arms. The dealer shrugged.

"Alright, suit yourself. 'Ey Terran! Get over here!"

The boy was up and over to the door in a flash, carefully picking his way through the others, grimacing in pain when someone smacked his leg. Rannock unlocked the cage. Peter and Rocket made quick eye contact and nodded.

"Rocket, why don't you go discuss a price with the man."

The raccoon quickly drew the dealer and his attention away from the two humans. Peter knelt down by the boy and spoke quickly and quietly.

"Hey kid. What's your name?"

"Cooper."

"Nice name. I'm Peter." The boy's eyes widened slightly. "I'm from Earth too. Listen closely, we're gonna break you outta here, kay? Are there any others here like you?" Cooper nodded frantically.

"My sister Lila and baby brother Nathaniel. I don't know if there are any others."

"Alright. Gamora, go see if you can find the girl. Groot, find the baby. And be gentle. Ok, kid, do you see that ship over there? The blue and orange one?" Cooper nodded. "Go and hide by it while we find your siblings."

"Ok, but what are you and him gonna do?" he asked, looking between him and Drax. Peter grinned.

"We're gonna cause a little trouble."

::::

Making sure no one was watching, Gamora quickly flipped over the cages to the inside of the square they were arranged in, then ran over to the females.

"Lila? Is there a Lila over here?" Gamora called, the new name foreign on her tongue. "Your brother sent me."

An older woman, with dark blue markings covering her face spoke up.

"Was she a young girl?" The assassin nodded. The woman shook her head sadly. "She was sold earlier today to a collector."

"What did they look like?" Gamora demanded.

"He had bright blond hair and a white coat-"

The ex-assassin cursed under her breath.

"Thank you and be ready. If I'm not mistaken, we're breaking you out of here." There were excited whispers throughout the crowd and Gamora hurriedly shushed them. Glancing behind her, she saw Peter and Drax had also jumped the cages and were hurriedly explaining what was about to happen to the others. Once she saw Peter pull out his blaster, she got to work blasting the locks off the cages next to her.

As soon as they were off, the slaves shoved against the doors, pooling out into the square enclosure.

"There are ships over there," Gamora said, directing those who would listen. "Get enough people and you could overwhelm the crews and get away from here."

"Thank you," said the woman with the blue markings and grasped the assassin's arm gratefully.

Gamora nodded then glanced over to where Peter and Drax were telling the other slaves the same thing.

On the other side, people were starting to notice that something was happening. Rocket glanced over to where slaves were beginning to pour over the cages.

"Well, I don't think we'll be buying today and I'll take _that_ ," he said, gesturing to the ensuing escapers, "as my cue to leave."

Moving quickly, the rodent scurried into the crowd, away from the confused, then angry, then yelling merchant, and attempted to find Groot. Finally he spotted him coming out of one of the nicer looking tents.

"I am Groot," he informed his friend.

"Gone! What do you mean he's gone?"

"I am Groot," the tree said helplessly.

"Peter won't like it." A moment later he was on the tree's shoulder. "Now let's get out of here."

::::

Cooper waited anxiously by the space ship. He had laid down by one of the wheels and was trying to follow Aunt Natasha's advice; stay small and try to blend in. He watched as group after group of slaves ran by to get to some of the operating cargo ships. Sounds of fighting could be heard in the distance. He was shaking.

He shook harder when a particularly rough looking group approached Peter's ship.

"Here we go boys. Let's get out of here."

Cooper jumped at the sudden shot of a blaster.

"That was a warning!" The boy's eyes widened at the sight of a raccoon with a smoking gun as big as he was standing on top of a sentient tree.

"Sorry boys," Peter explained. "But this is our ship and considering we're the ones that helped you escape…"

They were quick to leave after that.

"Cooper. Hey Cooper where are you?" the pilot called. Cooper got to his feet as quickly as he could and limped over to the other human.

"Where's Lila?" he asked. "And Nat. Did you find them?" He peered around the others, but couldn't see them anywhere. "Where are they?" he asked, voice cracking. The crew shared a meaningful glance. Peter took a knee and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"They aren't here anymore, but we're going to find them."

That was it. That was all Cooper's young heart could take right then. Tears streamed down his face that quickly turned into gross sobs. Acting instinctively, Peter gently wrapped the boy in his arms and picked him up.

"Let's go guys."

The motley crew boarded the ship and Peter passed Cooper off to Groot so he could get the ship in the air.

Barring the worry he felt for his fellow human, Peter watched happily as ship after stolen ship took off full of escaping slaves.

"Good job out there," Gamora said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"All in a day's work."

"Does this count as good thing or a bad thing?" she asked teasingly.

"Mm. Let's go with a little bit of both."

 **A/N: Wow, look, the Guardians finally made an appearance! In any case, hope you liked it and if you did (or even if you didn't), leave a review and have a great day!**


	5. Chapter 4: Placitum in Auxilium

**A/N: Ahahaha! Take that! I actually updated in a timely manner! I'm pretty happy with how this chapter turned out because I'm really excited about all the characters I get to bring in!**

 **In any case, thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy, and please, please review!**

It was a quiet morning in New Mexico. Jane had woken up earlier than normal and was quietly nursing a cup of coffee at the kitchen table while going over some data. She jumped a bit when her cellphone rang. A quick glance at the clock told her it was four am. Who could be calling? She answered.

"Hello?"

"Hi. Is this Jane Foster?"

"Yes, who's this?"

"This is Steve Rogers."

Jane nearly spit her coffee out.

"What?" she coughed, after managing to swallow. "Like, Captain America Steve Rogers?"

Steve laughed. "That's me. Thor gave us your number."

"Okay, so, uh, what can I do for you?"

"Long story short, Clint Barton- Hawkeye- has a secret family and his kids were recently kidnapped by aliens and we need your help to find them."

When Steve didn't get any reply after a minute he asked, "Are you still there?"

"Yeah, sorry, but, am I being pranked?"

"No! No, I swear this is true."

"Is Thor there?"

"Uh… Yeah, he just got back. Should I put him on?"

"Yes, please."

A moment later, Thor spoke. "Jane?" She breathed a small sigh of relief.

"Hey Thor. Was that really Captain America I was just talking to?"

"I can confirm that yes it was."

"So Hawkeye really does have a secret family then and his kids really did get kidnapped?"

"That is also true."

Jane shook her head and looked outside at the rising sun. Her life just kept getting weirder and weirder.

"What do you need from me?"

::::

Laura was waiting on the front porch when Clint and Thor returned. Immediately she could tell something was wrong.

Playing it cool she asked, "How was it?" worry underlying her words. Clint gave her a quick hug and shot her a look that clearly said _I'll tell you later._ Before he could speak though, Steve stepped outside while on the phone.

"Uh… Yeah, he just got back. Should I put him on?" He handed the phone to Thor, who nodded briefly to Laura, and then stepped inside. Clint grabbed Laura's hand and they took a small walk around their homestead in the early morning light and mist.

"We got a positive ID on who took the kids and where they might be. Thor offered to hook me up with a ship to go after them and come with me. I was thinking of seeing if Steve and Wanda would come too."

"And the others?"

"Would be more useful here. I trust Natasha to run things from this end and Tony has way more connections on Earth than in space. While first priority is finding the kids, they might be able to find something about why they were taken."

Laura nodded and was quiet for a moment.

"Do you think they're alright?" Clint didn't answer immediately, but put an arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

"I hope so baby. I hope so."

::::

They went back inside and were greeted by the sweet smell of bacon and pancakes. Bruce and Wanda were busy in the kitchen while Thor and Steve were discussing something in the corner and Tony and Natasha were now on speaker phone with Jane discussing what equipment she would need to bring and what type of plane Tony would need to get her.

Laura traded places with Wanda so Clint could talk to her.

"I am sorry this happened," she said quietly, as she joined him by the door.

"You and me both. Come on. Let's go talk to Point Break and Capsicle."

The two large men glanced up as the archer and witch approached them.

"Thor fill you in a bit?" he asked Steve.

"Yeah. It's good that we have a solid lead now."

"Now we just need to follow it, which is what I wanted to talk to you guys about. Thor said he could get us a ship to pursue them and I want you three to come with me."

Clint would be lying if he said he wasn't amused by how wide their eyes got.

"Just us three?" Cap asked. Clint nodded.

"Why?" Wanda asked. "Why not Natasha or someone you know better- trust better!" She was still not entirely over the mistakes she had made with Ultron, but was stopped by a firm hand on her shoulder.

"I trust you just fine," Clint reassured her. "And I trust Natasha to run things from this end. Besides, too big of an entourage is just asking for trouble."

"I agree with friend Clint," Thor said. "I believe the four of us will make a good team."

"I'm in," Steve said and smirked. "Never thought I'd get to go to space."

"Me neither," Wanda muttered. "But I will come too."

"Thank you," the archer sighed in relief.

"When do we leave?" Steve asked. Clint looked to Thor.

"A ship will be ready in a couple hours at the soonest."

"Then we'll leave then. We can't let the trail go cold, and I have a feeling it'll get colder quicker in space."

::::

Peter had Gamora and Rocket take over the controls while he went back to check on their newest passenger. The boy sat in Groot's lap while the tree man sat on the floor, leaned up against the wall. His sobs had turned into small hiccups and he scrubbed at his wet cheeks fiercely when he saw Peter coming.

"Hey. How's it going Cooper?"

"Kinda terrible actually," the kid replied honestly.

"Stupid question. My bad." He sat down next to them on the floor. "Here's a not stupid question: how did you and your siblings get to outer space?" Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Cooper replied,

"We were kidnapped by some guy named Yondu. He said you used to be part of their crew."

Peter had to admit, he was surprised, and then angry.

"What's that ba-aad guy up to now?" he muttered, catching himself. "He tell you why?" Cooper shrugged.

"He said someone had hired him, but he didn't say who. How did you end up here?"

"Same kinda thing," he said casually. "But I had no one to go back to." A gentle pause. "You got any family back home?" Cooper nodded again and sniffled.

"Got my mom and dad and we just got a whole bunch of aunts and uncles." When Peter gave him a confused look he laughed a little. "It's a long story… that kinda involves international security." That only made him look more confused.

"What kinda life are you living?"

"It's my dad's life really, but he's retired now. Sorta. Anyway, how are we gonna find my siblings?" Peter decided to let the matter drop.

"Gamora, she's the green one by the way, was able to get a description of who bought your sister and we know where they are. As for your brother… we'll figure it out. Now let's take a look at your leg. What happened there?" he asked as he stood to grab the first aid kit; the bandage could use changing. Cooper's face went about three shades paler at the mention of it.

"I am Groot," Groot comforted, noticing his reaction, and patted him on the head. Cooper closed his eyes as the pilot started to unwind the bandage. Peter whistled.

"Damn." Cooper kept his eyes shut and squoze Groot's hand as Peter stripped off the old bandage, cleaned the wound, and put on a new one.

"It looks a bit inflamed, so we'll have to keep an eye on it. You okay?" After a moment's hesitation, Cooper nodded and opened his eyes.

"Thanks. And thanks for rescuing us."

"Hey, no problem," Peter said settling back down on the floor.

"... Why did you rescue us?" Cooper asked, his curiosity winning out. Peter couldn't help but grin.

"It's what we do. Besides, you guys are the first humans I've seen in, oh, about twenty years. We gotta stick together." He extended his hand for a fist bump and the twelve year old gladly returned it.

"So tell me about Earth. What's the music like?"


	6. Chapter 5: In Navem Impono

**A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry this is late, but school got super busy. But hey, it's a long chapter, 2/3 of the characters are in space, and it's HALLOWEEN! Hope you guys enjoy it, thanks for reading, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!**

Steve figured he shouldn't even be surprised by now. Didn't die in the crash? He could handle that. 21st century? He was doing okay. Helicarrier? Threw him for a loop. But a real life alien space ship?

He figured he owed Fury another ten bucks.

It was a nice ride Thor had set them up with; basically a large, silver boat with a glass dome over the top. It had two decks: the top, which contained the controls and four bunk beds, and the bottom, that had a small kitchen and living area with a small hatch underneath for storage.

A couple of Asgardians finished loading the ship while Thor and Clint spoke with Odin. Steve couldn't be sure, but Clint looked very on edge.

"Something isn't right," Wanda muttered, confirming his feelings. He raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue. "I can feel his emotions from here. He is angry and… scared? It's very loud."

"Hm. Well, besides Thor, Clint hasn't had the best experiences with Asgardians." When Wanda looked at him quizzically, he continued. "Thor's brother attacked Manhattan and put him under mind control." Understanding showed in Wanda's eyes. No wonder he had electrocuted her in the face.

Thor came over to them, but Odin placed a hand on Hawkeye's shoulder to stop him. They exchanged a few words and he rejoined them. Wanda watched Odin a bit curiously and suspiciously as he walked away.

"Let us be off!" Thor announced. He and Steve boarded the ship, but Wanda held Clint back.

"Are you okay?"

"Peachy." Wanda glared at him

"Something about Odin sets you on edge. Me as well. He is not… right." Clint held her gaze for a moment and then slowly nodded.

"You're not wrong," he said, climbing aboard. "But there's not much we can do about it. Let's go."

::::

Peter danced quietly back to the front of the ship after Cooper had fallen asleep. He was worried about the wound on his leg; it looked like it might be infected.

"How is he?" Gamora asked, giving up the copilot's seat to Peter.

"Sleeping for now. His leg isn't in good shape, but I guess we'll see what happens. How long until we get to the Collector's?"

"At this speed?" Rocket replied. "'Bout ten hours."

"Well," Peter said, reclining his chair and turning up the music. "Guess we better get comfy then."

::::

Rocket slapped him awake sometime later.

"Hey. We're in orbit around the planet. I figured you'd want to make a plan or something stupid like that before we go in guns blazing."

"Thanks. Let's go find the others."

They went back to the cargo area, where the first "bunch of idiots standing in a circle" had taken place, and found Drax and Gamora sharpening their respective weapons while Groot stood against the wall, cradling a still sleeping Cooper.

"He's still asleep?" Peter exclaimed. He felt a twinge of worry, but tried to push it away. The kid was probably just tired.

"What's the plan?" Drax asked.

"Well, I was thinking we go in guns blazing."

"Hey!" Rocket protested. "That's my plan."

"And we're going to use it. You should be happy."

"The real plan Peter," Gamora said.

"Fine. We go in, looking mostly peaceful, find the girl, and get out without paying."

"What does she look like?" Drax asked.

"She's a human. She should stick out like a sore thumb."

"So she looks like you?"

"Yes. Well, no. She'd be smaller than me, probably with long hair."

"Like your beard?"

"No! No beard! Ju-" The pilot ran a hand down his face. "You be in charge of the fighting, and I'll be in charge of finding the girl."

Cooper began to stir in Groot's arms and the tree gently set him down.

"Hey Cooper," Peter said softly, kneeling down beside him.

"Wha...Where… Oh, right," he said, slowly waking up. "What's going on?" he asked, looking around at them all.

"We think we found your sister." Cooper perked up.

"Really? Where? Is she okay?"

"Well, we're gonna go and find out. You and Groot are gonna stay here-"

"I am Groot," he harrumphed.

"C'mon man," he pleaded. Groot grunted, but relented. "And we'll go get your sister and be back before you know it, 'kay?"

"'Kay." Peter patted him on the back and he and the others stood up.

"Let's go."

::::

Clint had to admit he was apprehensive as Thor gently landed their ship on the surface of a pretty sketchy looking alien planet. It was nearing dusk and the sky was a deep green color. Unfamiliar stars were just starting to show themselves as they set down.

"One of us should stay here," the archer said. He couldn't believe he was about to suggest this. "Thor, I think it should be you." The demigod raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What are Asgardian's reputations outside of Asgard?" Understanding showed in his face.

"I understand. Will you three be safe?"

"I think we can handle ourselves. Anything we should know before going in?"

"Don't drink the green stuff."

"Good to know. Let's go guys."

He, Cap, and Wanda disembarked and headed towards their destination: a seedy bar at the edge of the docks. Word was that Yondu frequented it fairly regularly and if he wasn't there, there was probably someone who knew where he was.

Now Hawkeye and Cap had had experience going undercover. They were confident that whatever happened, it wouldn't faze them. They were wrong.

Wanda was impressed by how quickly the two of them recovered from the initial shock of the blatant craziness and unfamiliarity of the place. The room was pretty big and packed with all sorts of characters of every description imaginable. It was noisy and hot, but basically what one would expect from a bar. The lighting was pretty dark, but seemed to give off a purple hue and the atmosphere was a bit smoky. Most of the tables were filled either with people gambling or just enjoying some drinks. A game of darts was going on in the corner. Clint quickly schooled his features and thoughts away from awe and confusion to determination and focus. Steve was only a second behind, but continued to glance around in suspicious wonder.

"Wish I had a pad and pencil. How're you doing?" Cap asked as they moved to the actual bar.

"Okay… It's so busy. And colorful." She wasn't just referring to the many varied patrons, but rather their emotions and thoughts. They seeped into the air, calling to her, causing her to try and make sense of it all.

"There are creatures like me here," she murmured in fascination. Across the room, a group of short creatures with large ears and snub noses were engaged in a debate, not mouth to mouth, but mind to mind and she could hear it.

"I don't think we should go there," one said. "It's too loosely run."

"And what does that mean?" demanded another.

"It means something's gonna go wrong sooner or later, especially with a slave market that big." Wanda's gut twisted uncomfortably, but she continued to listen.

"Hm… Fair enough, but the collector's market is there too and I know a few clients who would pay quite handsomely for a youngling."

"How handsomely?"

The number he gave was a big one.

"Might be worth the risk…" the leader mused, then nodded. "Fine. We'll stop there and see what we can find." They finished their drinks and left. Wanda made sure she got a good impression of their minds and felt confident she could recognize them again; if they didn't find any other leads here, perhaps wherever they were talking about would be a good place to start.

Clint approached the bar, taking every bit of weirdness and unfamiliarity in stride. It was amazing what the circus had inadvertently prepared him for. A quick glance at the bottles behind the bar told him that this would be an experience to remember.

"Three of the house special." The bartender (who looked like he was on fire?), glanced curiously at him, but got him the drinks. Steve joined him and Wanda followed a moment later, but seemed out of it.

"No one matches the description as far as I can tell," Steve said quietly, carefully inspecting his glass.

"Yeah. I figured we hang here for a while, play some darts, see what we overhear. Is Wanda okay?" She was staring after some little green men as they left.

"What? Oh, yes, I'm fine. I was listening to their conversation." Clint nodded.

"Alright." He raised his glass in a mock cheer. "Let's do this."

The drink tasted roughly of beer, but with an unfamiliar salty tang. The three of them worked themselves into the atmosphere until they were just three more patrons having some drinks with their friends.

Eventually Clint tapped Steve's shoulder and gestured over to the dartboard.

"I'm gonna go wait for a turn, see if I learn anything."

Once Clint was gone, Steve gestured to the barkeep.

"Hey, has a guy named Yondu been around here recently?" The barkeep nodded and continued polishing a glass. "Think he's coming back anytime soon?" A shrug. "Any chance you know where I could find him? I had a business proposition for him." He shook his head and rubbed his fingers together. Cap sighed. So this was how it was going to be.

Clint was having a much easier time picking up information by the dart board. He casually sipped his drink while listening to the conversation next to him.

"Freaking Starlord. Last I heard, he had stolen the crown jewels of Mercona."

"Weren't those stolen like five years ago?"

"Well, yeah, but he stole them back and now they're in a museum or something."

"Who's this you're talking about?" Clint asked, pulling a chair up. They eagerly let him join the conversation, dying to share what gossip they knew.

"His name's Starlord."

"He's like a mercenary."

"Yeah, he and his crew get hired to do all sorts of things."

"Good, bad, you name it."

"Sometimes they do it for free."

"They don't really answer to anyone."

"What does he look like?" Clint asked.

"Kinda like you actually," one of them said, after a moment. "Bit younger, bit of a beard, long red coat." Another human?

"Any idea where he is now?"

"I can tell you that," a new voice said.

One of the dart players, a woman with bright red skin and glowing yellow eyes, smiled at him.

"Beat me at a game of darts," she said, "and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"And if I lose?" he asked as he stood.

"Well, I'm kind of hungry."

"So, what, I take you out to dinner? You should probably know that I'm married." He took the darts she offered and quietly inspected them for faults and anything that might indicate cheating. Sure enough, a couple of the feathers were bent and they were weighted oddly, but it was nothing he couldn't compensate for.

"I was thinking I take you _as_ my dinner." That got his attention. One look at her face told him that she was completely serious.

"Deal."

The patron he'd been talking with grabbed his sleeve.

"You sure about this? She doesn't play fair."

"I figured, but I've got a few tricks up my sleeve too. You ready?" he asked her. She nodded, a coy smile on her face. "Ladies first," he offered.

As expected, she was good. All three darts hit the bullseye. As she was taking her turn, he screamed in his head across the room, _Wanda!_

He wasn't entirely sure how her powers worked, but the girl jumped and looked over at him.

" _What was that?"_ Her voice echoed in his mind.

" _Can your powers detect technology?"_

" _Generally, yes."_

" _Can you sense anything on these darts I'm holding?"_

There was a pause as she focused, but finally said,

" _There is something, yes. I can probably disable it if you want."_

He'd been watching the woman's throws carefully, and they all flew true. The game was scored manually, so whatever was on his darts had to be cheating.

" _Do it."_

He stepped up to the line, judged the shot one more time, and fired off the three darts in rapid succession. All three hit the bullseye. She turned to glare at him suspiciously, but he maintained an air of being mildly impressed with himself as he retrieved his darts.

"Best two out of three?" he baited. With a snarl, the woman moved five feet back and threw again, still getting a good score, but not as good as last time. Clint moved back, threw, and hit the same spots he had last time.

Finally, the woman stomped back five more feet and hurled the darts, losing her focus and basically ruining her score. Whistling as he went, the entire bar's eyes on him, he moved back an extra feet, fired, and got three more bullseyes. He turned to her, hands in his pockets, face unreadable except for a small sense of triumph.

"So, Starlord?"

 **A/N: Reviews are wonderful things.**


	7. Chapter 6: Instituo

**A/N: Wow. Two months without an update? That's... wow. I'm sorry. In any case, I hope you guys had a marvelous holiday season and are enjoying January so far! Here's the next update, (sorry it's a little short), but please, read, enjoy, and review!**

Peter tried to avoid shifting uncomfortably, but after the last time he'd been to the Collector's and everything had, well, exploded, he couldn't help it. And honestly, the whole place just gave him the willies. He hoped Cooper's sister was alright.

"You guys ready?" he asked as they came to the door.

"You know it," Rocket said, hefting his gun. Gamora slapped him upside the head.

"No guns until we need to leave."

"Hey, I never said I was gonna use it. Just… keeping it handy."

"Whatever," she scoffed. Peter glared at them, then opened the door.

No one immediately approached them, so Peter signaled for Gamora and Rocket to go look for Lila. Just as they were out of sight, hidden by the various displays that cluttered the shop, an attendant shuffled forward, almost identical to the last one, but this time with bright blue skin.

"Welcome," she greeted. "Do you have an appointment?" Her grin was strained as she glanced nervously between the three of them.

"Ah, no," Peter replied. "Just thought we'd pop in and browse."

"Of course. Are you looking for anything in particular today?"

"I am Groot."

"What the big guy said. Something- some _one_ \- like me. Younger though. You have anything like that?"

"Ah, you must be referring to the master's latest acquisition. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid there is already a buyer. Perhaps I can show you something similar?" Just as he opened his mouth to respond, there was a loud _crash crash CLATTER SHATTER meow_ from somewhere in the shop.

"If you'll excuse me," the girl breathed, and ran off.

"Dammit Rocket," Peter muttered.

"I am Groot," Groot agreed.

"Go find him," Peter ordered. "Drax, see if you can find Gamora. I'll go look around. Shout if you've found her, then meet up back here. Let's move, we don't have much time."

::::

Gamora sighed deeply at the sound of whatever disaster Rocket had caused across the shop and kept moving. Hopefully that would buy them a little bit of time.

 _Or drastically decrease it,_ the more cynical side of her said. She kept looking.

Large, clear containers towered over her on every side, some holding plants, some holding people, none of them human. The farther back she got, the more secure the cages looked until one finally caught her eye.

Curled up in the back corner was a little girl who looked scared and confused and exhausted. She was wearing a dress similar to the shop attendants and someone had forced some makeup onto her, trying to make her look prettier? Older?  
 _More desirable,_ Gamora sneered. An item to be bought and sold that just needed a little fixing up. The assassin approached the door and began to examine the lock. The noise startled the girl inside and she jumped, turning to stare at Gamora with wide eyes.

"It's okay," she soothed. "Can you hear me?" The girl nodded hesitantly. "I'm going to get you out and take you back to your brother, okay?" That got her interest.

"My brother? Where is he? Is he okay?" she cried urgently. Tears were welling in her eyes as she crawled closer to the door.

"Yes, he's fine. We have him on our ship. Now let me figure this out."

She still hadn't made much progress when Drax came around the corner.

"Is this her?" he asked.

"Why else would I be trying to get her out?" He just looked confused, so she sighed and said, "Yes."

She was not prepared for him to open his mouth and just start _yelling._

"What are you doing?" she hissed, staring at him like he'd gone insane.

"Peter said to shout when we found her. AAAHHHHH!"

"I do not have time for this," she muttered darkly, drawing her sword and slamming it between the door and the jam, causing Lila to scream in surprise. The door shattered as it was pried open, spraying glass all around.

"Come on, come on," she said and grabbed Lila. "Let's get out of here. Strax!"

He paused. "Huh?"

"Stop screaming. Let's go."

An alarm had started blaring and gunfire was going off somewhere in the building. Lila buried her face in Gamora's shoulder and held on tightly as they ran. They met up with Peter near the door.

"Got her?"

Gamora nodded.

"Good."

Groot and Rocket crashed through a display case holding several various items of (probably) extreme value, shooting at someone coming behind them.

"Let's move!" the raccoon yelled.

Out the doors and into the bright sunlight. The sun was just starting to set and their ship was docked a thousand yards away. They ran.

"Cooper!" Peter shouted as they neared the spaceship. "Cooper! Now!"

Thankfully, Cooper either heard or saw them coming, because the bay door began to open and the ramp lowered. Gamora sprinted up the ramp first while the others brought up the rear, firing at whatever security was chasing them. Peter got to the controls just as Cooper finished closing the doors and got them into the air as quick as he could.

"Great job kid," he said and ruffled his hair. Cooper smiled, pleased with himself.

"Did you get her?"

Peter nodded. "Gamora's with her in the back. Go see her."

Cooper tried to run, nearly face planted, and settled for hopping on one leg as fast as he could to the back of the ship.

"Lila!"

She was sitting on a box in front of Gamora, who was helping her to get the make-up off, but as soon as she saw her brother, she was up and away like a flash.

"Cooper!" She buried her face in his chest and as soon as she embraced him the tears started flowing. "Where's Nathaniel?" she asked

"We don't know yet. He got sold to someone else." They finally separated and looked each other up and down.

"How's your leg?"

"Getting better I hope. Peter, he's the captain by the way, put some stuff on it, so hopefully that helps." He glanced over to where Gamora was watching them with a wistful expression. "So you've met Gamora then."

"Yeah. She's scary, but nice." He couldn't help but grin.

"That's what I thought too."

They went back over by the assassin so she could finish getting the makeup off.

"There you go," she said. "That's all of it."

"Thanks," Lila said softly. All of a sudden, the events from the past few days came rushing in and overwhelmed the small girl, bringing her to tears. Cooper placed an arm around her shoulder and made gentle shushing noises. Though Gamora liked to believe she was a stone cold assassin, it simply wasn't true, and the more she watched these two siblings interact, the more she found herself missing her own sister, as convoluted as their relationship had been.

"We'll find your brother," she promised the tiny girl. "But for now, you need food and rest, okay?"

"Okay," she sniffled.

"Come on. Let's go get some food, then you can take a nap. Maybe if you're lucky, I'll even tell you a story." That piqued their interest.

"A story about what?" Cooper asked.

"Mm. Maybe the one about how a bunch of losers saved the galaxy."

 **A/N: Tada! Two out of the three chilluns are found! Stay tuned for what's going on back at home and with Clint and his merry men as they navigate space.**

 **Reviews are wonderful things...**


	8. Chapter 7: Et in Venari Semita

**A/N: Hello hello everyone! Sorry for the long wait! Hopefully the next one will be quicker. Special thanks to CarnivorousOak for their help! As always, thanks for your support! Please read, review, and enjoy!**

Jane had never been in a helicopter before. Spaceship? Oh yeah. But a helicopter- chartered by _Tony Stark-_ was a whole new terrifying experience. She spotted the quaint, if somewhat large, farmhouse through the window and they started to bank towards it. A moment later, they landed on the lawn, about twenty meters from the house. Jane thanked the pilot as the blades wound to a stop and started gathering her equipment.

The door to the copter slid open revealing the Black Widow and someone she didn't recognize.

"Jane Foster?" the redhead asked.

"That's me. Natasha, right?"

The woman smiled.

"Right. This is Laura, Clint's- Hawkeye's- wife."

"Nice to meet you," Jane said, shaking her hand. "I'm sorry about what happened. I'll do whatever I can to help."

"Thank you. And thanks for coming on such short notice," Laura replied, stepping back as Jane hopped out of the copter.

"Hey, when the Avengers call, you show up." She glanced into the back of the helicopter and cringed. "Could you guys help me unload my equipment? I can get it set up from there, but… there's a lot."

"Sure," Natasha chuckled.

Between the three of them it was easy enough to carry all of the stuff to the back porch. From there, she could see where the ship had landed and the blownback grass from where it took off. Whatever hint of a smile that had been on Laura's face was now long gone.

"Let me go introduce you to the others."

The three of them walked inside and Jane had to admit, she was not prepared for the controlled chaos that was Tony Stark. He stood in the center of the kitchen, near the counter where a tablet sat, projecting holograms surrounding the engineer in a complete cylinder. He appeared to be on the phone with someone too, even as he flicked between different screens, turning this way then that way, pulling up another at the same time dismissing three. Doctor Banner sat at the kitchen table on his laptop, a cup of tea in his hand, a good distance away from all the chaos. He glanced up as they came in.

"Tony!" he called. Tony glanced up and placed a finger to his ear.

"Please hold. What?" he asked Bruce. Bruce nodded to the others. Tony whirled around.

"Ah! Doctor Foster." He parted the screens and stepped forward, hand outstretched. "Nice to finally meet you. Loved your paper on the Einstein-Rosen Bridge."

"Oh! Um, thank you. I'm a big fan of your tech."

"Who isn't? And over here we have Doctor Bruce Banner, but I'm sure you've heard of him." Bruce stood up and came over to shake her hand.

"Pleasure to meet you."

"You too. Your research is fascinating." He gave her a small smile.

"So," Tony said, clapping his hands together. "As Cap and Point Break briefed you on, we've got an alien abduction on our hands. How can you help?"

"Well," she began, pulling out a notebook. "I used these antennas from the Malekith incident to set up a perimeter- a barrier really- to contain the effects of the planetary alignment. But I think I can repurpose them, with of my storm tracker gear, to track the ship… sort of." She set the open notebook on the counter next to the tablet where Tony peered over it eagerly. "I figure that ship's gotta have some sort of signature that's not from this world. If we could identify it, then it's only a small leap to tracking it, and, with my computer, we can probably get a pretty solid location for it."

"Not bad Foster," Tony muttered. "Not bad. Need an extra pair of hands?"

"Ones that actually have a degree in mechanical engineering? Yes please. I can cobble stuff together pretty well, but-"

"I can make it go a lot quicker. Let's go."

Natasha grabbed the back of Tony's shirt before he could make it out the door.

"Before you go "science" or whatever, what have you found?"

"Oh right." He pulled his screens back up. "I've been working to narrow down our current suspects. I've got a list of Barton's enemies," he said, pulling up a stack of screens about three inches thick. "And then cut it down to ones with access to government agencies, terrorist cells, and aliens." Half the stack disappeared. "This is where I would start." Natasha nodded.

"Right. Give me your earpiece and I'll finish that call too."

"Oh yeah." He passed it off to her. "Have fun."

Natasha sighed as the two scientists left, poring over the notebook as they went.

"You take half, I take half?" she offered.

"Sure," Laura agreed. Flipping halfheartedly through the screens, Natasha returned to the call. The others could hear some angry muttering from the other side.

"I'm sorry Mr. President. But you know how Mr. Stark can be."

:::::

"Welcome back friends," Thor greeted. "Were you successful?"

"I probably made my first intergalactic enemy," Clint admitted. "But I got what we needed."

"Do we know our next destination?" Thor asked as the others trooped onto the ship. Clint took his spot in the copilot's seat as the others filed in.

"I got a possible lead. What did you guys find?"

Steve nodded at Wanda to go first.

"I overheard some- a group of… people talking. There's a… large slave market where they sell younger children, it sounded like. It might be a good place to look," she said. Clint's jaw tightened and he nodded.

"Cap?"

"I talked to the bartender," he said as he sat down. "He said Yondu was heading to a bazaar. Said he had some cargo and was planning on picking up some more before he got there. I wouldn't be surprised if he was talking about…." He trailed off, enough said.

"Did you get coordinates?"

"Yeah." He rattled them off to Thor who punched them in and, with a nod from Clint, got the ship in motion.

"What about you?" Steve asked. "Did you find out anything?"

"Yeah," Clint said. "There's this mercenary named Starlord that might be worth checking out. He has a contact on Xandar, Nova Prime."

Thor looked at him, a bit surprised and a bit suspicious.

"Xandar is the seat of the government for this quadrant. And Nova Prime, if I recall correctly, is one of the higher ups, so to speak."

"Is that good or bad?" Wanda asked.

"I do not know."

"Thor, how do you set up a com line on this thing? We might as well try."

:::::

Loki sighed on his throne. Being king was a lot more boring than he'd expected. Then Barton had shown up, a welcome distraction to simply ruling the kingdom. He'd reestablished some connections with old allies, creatures that knew the best places to look and the right people to ask. In fact, one of them should be getting here soon…

"My lord, there's someone here to see you," a guard announced, marching through the door. "They're requesting to meet with you in private."

"Send him to my quarters. I'll be there shortly," he replied, standing and striding regally from the room. He arrived at his room and let the illusion drop a moment before there was a knock at the door. He opened it with a wave of his hand and the visitor walked in.

Loki had to suppress a sneer at the ostentatiously dressed man before him wearing a bright blue suit and a purple cape accompanied by a smug grin.

"Loki! Long time no see!"

"Monark," Loki grinned, finding it hard not to grimace.

"Glad to see you're not dead. So, you have a job for me?"

"Yes. An… ally of mine, his children were kidnapped and taken to who knows where. I want you to find them-"

"Easy."

"And keep them safe until I, or my ally, can come pick them up. Do you understand?"

"Of course."

"Good. I will hold you to that."

"Just give me the information- and my pay," he said with a grin. "And I'll be on my way."

"Of course," Loki said, turning into Odin again. "Right this way."

 **A/N: Oh right, this guy. Name is Monark Starstalker and he's an intergalactic bounty hunter in the Marvel Universe, so he should do nicely. Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 8: Dignum Mundos

**A/N: Hello hello everyone! My apologies for taking so long. Hopefully, the wait will be shorter next time. Have you guys seen the new movie yet? I really liked it, and addressed a couple things in here, plot holes that came up, but no spoilers!**

 **Thanks for reading! Please read, review, and enjoy!**

The children were asleep in the back, sharing Gamora's bunk at the moment. The Guardians were currently gathered in the front of the ship, eating a late dinner of ramen and freeze dried vegetables. Peter and Gamora took the two captain's seats while Rocket sat in Groot's lap on the ground and Drax had pulled up a crate. The ship was on autopilot for the moment and it was nice to have a minute to just sit and breathe. Space drifted by silently and the quiet sound of the engines and their chewing was oddly relaxing.

Drax finished with a loud belch and set his bowl aside.

"So, what's next?" he asked.

Peter sighed and leaned back in the chair.

"We still need to find the baby, but, as far as I can tell, we have no leads."

"I am Groot."

"He says he's worried about the kid's leg," Rocket translated.

Peter hummed in response. "I am too. We should probably get that checked out. Give us something to do until we know our next move."

The console made a chirping noise.

"It's a call from Xandar," Gamora said.

"Answer it."

A large screen popped up, showing the stern face of Nova Prime.

"Nova Prime! What can we do for you?" Peter asked, swiveling to face her.

"I've got a mission for you," she began. "I was recently contacted by one of the Avengers- superheroes from Earth- who wish to enlist your services."

"Oh yeah?"

"His name is Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye. For some reason, his children were kidnapped by the Ravagers. He was hoping you might have heard something or be willing to join the search. He gave us these pictures."

Sure enough, three pictures of Cooper, Lila, and what he could only assume was Nathaniel popped up.

"Tell him he's in luck. We've already got two out of three."

She blinked.

"Excuse me, what? Wait," she said, cutting him off with a raised hand before he could speak. "Let me just patch you through to him. That will be easier."

She disconnected and they waited as it rang.

::::::

Clint was surprised to receive a call back so quickly. He was also rather confused when he answered it, and the camera showed him a ragtag bunch of aliens eating ramen in what, if he didn't know better, he would think was a college dorm. There was (what looked like) a human sitting in the captain's seat, who quickly swallowed and cleared his throat.

"Are you Hawkeye?" he asked.

"Yeah. You wouldn't happen to be Starlord would you?"

"The one and only," he grinned. "And I'm happy to tell you that we've already found Lila and Cooper."

It was like a slap in the face.

"Really?" he choked out. Starlord, and the others, nodded.

Clint sank further into his seat, the relief that two of his children were found and at least relatively safe took all the strength out of him. Steve gave him a supportive clap on the shoulder. He forced the tears back into his eyes with the heel of his palm; there'd be time to cry later.

"How are they? Can I see them?" he asked. Starlord shared a meaningful glance with the green-skinned alien sitting next to him.

"They're okay. Cooper has a nasty wound on his leg-we were actually going to take him to a doctor- we think it might be infected. Of course, they're both shaken up by this whole… ordeal, but they're okay. They're sleeping right now, but we could probably wake them up."

"Let them sleep. Just, call me when they wake up, okay?"

"'Course," Starlord promised. He glanced around at the other heroes. "Wait, is that Thor?" The Asgardian waved. "Dude! Huge fan! And these guys are, well, at least moderate fans.

"I guess we should do introductions. I'm Peter Quill aka Starlord. Left Earth as a kid in the 80s. This is Gamora…" He gave a quick intro for each of the Guardians and gestured for Clint to go.

"Well, I'm Clint Barton aka Hawkeye. Master marksman and archer. Here we have, Thor, you know him, he let me borrow a spaceship; Steve Rogers aka Captain America. Super strong, super cool; and Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch. Telekinesis, telepathy, the whole shebang. We defend Earth when it needs it."

"Nice to meet you all. So we know there's a hospital out in these parts, and we were gonna head there and get Cooper's leg checked out. How about you meet us there and we can compare notes, see if we can find Nathaniel."

"Sounds like a plan."

"I'll send you the coordinates."

"Thanks. And thank you, for finding my kids."

"No problem." Peter gave them a small smile and a salute and signed off. A moment later, coordinates appeared.

"Thor, get us moving. I'm gonna call Laura."

::::::

Laura jerked up from where she sat at the kitchen table when the phone rang and she scrambled to answer it.

"Any news?" she asked, seeing Clint's number in the caller ID.

"We found Cooper and Lila."

She let out something between a sob and a sigh of relief. Natasha and Bruce looked up from their work to look at her and she put it on speaker phone.

"A sorta mercenary/superhero named Peter Quill found them. We're going to meet him then team up to try and find Nathaniel."

"Oh Clint… oh thank God," she murmured, resting her head on the kitchen counter.

"Any luck on your end?" he asked.

"Not much," she said. "The list of possible suspects is surprisingly small. As far as we know, there's only one who knows about our family, but he doesn't have the resources. At least, we don't think he does."

"Hm. Maybe Natasha should pay him a visit, just to check."

"Not a bad idea," Nat muttered. "He had to be involved somehow in any case."

"Wish I could come with," Clint growled. "It's been a while."

"I'll tell him you say hi," Nat smirked.

"Give it your personal touch. He'll appreciate it."

"Sorry, but, who are we talking about?" Bruce asked. Clint sighed, a sound somewhere between rage and amusement.

"My brother."

::::::

A couple hours later Peter had Rocket land the ship while he went to wake up the kids. In the back of the ship, the lighting was dim and warm. He peeked into Gamora's bunk and sure enough, they were still fast asleep. Lila's face was relaxed, completely at peace curled up next to her brother. Cooper's face on the other hand, was covered in a sheen of sweat and his brow was furrowed. His breath sounded labored and seemed to rattle around in his chest.

"Hey Lila, Coop. Time to wake up." He shook them gently and Lila came to almost immediately, looking around in confusion and fear before gradually calming down. Cooper moaned and curled up tighter before finally opening his eyes when Lila poked him in the cheek.

"You don't look so hot kid," Peter said. He just groaned in response.

"My leg hurts. Everything hurts," he moaned and started to curl up again.

"Uh-uh, can't do that, we're taking you to the doctor's kiddo. Your dad's gonna meet us there." Now they were awake.

"Dad?! You talked to Dad?!" Cooper asked, sitting straight up.

"Yeah, him and Thor and a couple of other guys are gonna meet us there. Now come on, you need to get up."

He watched as Cooper struggled out of the sheets and had to catch him from falling when he tried to put weight on his bad leg.

"You okay?"

"It hurts. And everything feels hot," Cooper said. Peter's brow furrowed again and he was taken back to his first mission with the Ravagers. He'd been shot in the side, a scrape more than anything, but had hidden it from Yondu. When the Centurion had found out he had _not_ been happy. He'd forced Peter back into bed, redressed his wounds himself, and kept checking on him throughout the day. Despite gruff appearances, Yondu cared, and now, it seemed the shoe was on Peter's foot.

Which brought up another question. Ravagers didn't deal in kids and when they did, there was an unspoken rule to treat them well.

So what was different about these three?

"Here." Peter scooped Cooper up in his arms and gestured for Lila to follow him back to the front of the ship. The young girl trotted along beside him, bouncing up and down every now and then, evidently feeling better after the nap and the news that their dad was coming.

"Can we call Dad?" she asked.

"Sure," he said, giving her a small smile. "Rocket, we good to go?"

"Yeah, me 'n Groot'll watch the ship."

"Cool. Can you set up a comm link to Clint for Lila?" The raccoon took a moment to look at the girl. She was barely taller than him it looked like. She had a nervous, but hopeful look in her eyes, waiting for his response.

"Yeah, sure." Like he would even consider saying no to those puppy dog eyes.

"Gamora, Drax!" Peter called, opening the ramp to the planet's surface. He crouched down in front of Lila. "Be good for Rocket, kay? Your dad should be here soon, but we need to get Cooper in to see the doctor." She nodded.

"Okay." She gave Cooper a quick hug that he returned as best as he could, then stretched and gave Peter one too. "Thank you."

He tensed momentarily in surprise, but then smiled.

"No prob." He stood back up and gestured for Gamora and Drax to follow him.

The four of them left the ship, Peter still carrying Cooper in his arms. In hindsight, he was glad that Rocket had piloted them directly to the hospital; this kid needed help and _fast._ There was a small landing pad for emergency vehicles and those in a rush like them, though theirs was the only one there at the moment.

The building itself was decently large. The windows were tinted, preventing others from seeing in, and seemed to function as solar panels. The planet was part of an alliance with Xandar, so he wasn't too worried about the quality of care (and any bureaucracy issues that popped up).

The automatic doors parted with a whoosh and they stepped inside the bright, and achingly clean smelling lobby.

Peter hated hospitals. Too many long days waiting for his mother's test results, too many long nights spent by his mother's bedside, and all he seemed to hear there was never ending bad news.

Gamora glanced at Peter and, without it needing to be said, took the lead. She approached the desk as the others followed behind and got the nurse's, a feminine lizard looking creature's, attention.

"This boy's leg got bitten and is severely infected. He needs help immediately."

The nurse glanced from Gamora to Cooper who had dozed off in Peter's arms. She reached out a slender arm and pressed her hand to his forehead. She closed her eyes for a moment before removing her hand and pressing a call button on her desk. A moment later, two more nurses, one with deep purple skin and the other with bright red skin and spikes for hair, came around the corner with a levitating gurney.

"Prep surgery bay 4," the desk nurse told them as Peter gently set Cooper down on the gurney and they whisked him away.

"What's wrong with him? Is it bad?" he asked.

"I can tell the general state of person's injuries by touch," the woman explained quickly. "The infection is rather severe and if it continues to spread... it will kill him."

"What?! You can stop it though, right?" She shook her head.

"It's grown too strong. The only way to stop it now is amputation."

This. This was the reason Peter didn't like hospitals.


	10. Announcement

p style="text-align: center;"strongAnnouncement/strong/p  
p style="text-align: center;"Hey guys. So, I am leaving tomorrow to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka LDS, Mormon, etc). /p  
p style="text-align: center;"I will be gone for 18 months./p  
p style="text-align: center;"I am so unbelievably sorry that I couldn't finish this story before I left. So help me, I emwill /emfinish it when I get back, and if you're still here/interested then, you're the real MVP./p  
p style="text-align: center;"So yeah. Sorry about that. If you just can't wait that long, PM me and I can tell you what happens or if you have any questions about what a mission actually is, hmu!/p  
p style="text-align: center;"See you in a year and half! You're all wonderful!/p 


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